Ironing board



Jan.. 30, 1951 H. ADAMEC 2,539,804

IRONING BOARD Filed Oct. 17, 1946 4 Sheets-Sheet l IH. ADAMEC IRONINGBOARD Jan. 30, 1951 4- Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 17, 1946 will 11%!INVENTOR.

-H. ADAMEC IRONING BOARD Jan. 30, 1951 4 Sheets-Sheet 15 Filed Oct. 17,1946 INVENTOR.

lllli JanfSQ, 1951 ADAMI-:c 2,539,804

- RoNING BOARD Filed Oct. 1'?, 1946 4 4 vShevels-Sheet 4 W/ .i y

Fl/ f7 101 I N VEN TOR.

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Patented Jan. 30, 1951 Nitro srATLES rATENr orrice i l This inventionrelates broadly to all ironing boards and ironing `tables whereupon asad iron is used, and more particularly to ironing boards of the typesemployed by the housewife in thehome.

One object of my invention isto provide an 'ironing board having anair-insulated sad iron holder (I having found by experiment that an airspace was a better insulator than other materials used), and the sadiron holder having its upper surface ush with the ironing surface of thepad-and-cloth element so that the iron requires no lifting during itstravel to and from the holder; and said holder being located atone endof the board so that it may be reached without departing from acontinuation o1 the straight line ironing motion and direction. rlheaddition of the holder also eliminates necessity of tilting a sad ironin rest, in which position its heated bottom would be exposed Vto easilyburn a person or the iron easily fall. The addition of the holder doesnot decrease the ironing space in view that the butt area of the boardis generally reserved for resting the sad iron.

Another object is to provide an ironing board having the iron holderlocatedwithin the perimeter of an ordinary shaped ironing board so thatis does not extend to where it may easily be contacted and burn apersons hand or arm or within reach of ohildrens hands on the edge ofthe board; and which iron holder is permanently fastened to the board,thereby requiring no extra handling or adjusting to vput away after useand thereby avoiding Vpossibility of burning ones hand when the holderis hot, 'and eliminates the possibility of the hot holder and itscontained sad iron from accidently falling off the board on to the flooror on children.

Another object is to provide an ironing board having the ironing clothto not extend over the butt end of the board, and thus prevents soilingand wearing oi the ironing cloth when the ironing board is folded up andstanding on its butt end upon the floor. a v v v Another object is toprovide an ironing board having the iron holder to not rest on theironing cloth, nor contact therewith, thereby preventing the iron holderwhen hot, from wearing out the cloth, and thus gives the cloth a longerlife, avoiding frequent cloth replacement. K

Another object is to provide an ironing board vhaving a Cord guidingelement to prevent the said iron cord from dangling and rubbing on thework being ironed and causing the work to be# come soiled, r catching onthe edge of the Work and Wrinkling it.

` A A further object of Inyinvention is to provide an ironing lboardcomprising the combination of all theVabove-said objects,` and which isengineeredn to assure better utility than heretofore types, having a,more pleasing appearance and which is Vdesigned to allow more efiicientmanufacturing methods for producing such type of ironing board.

These and other objects maybe discovered upon study of thisspecicationand the accompanying drawings wherein: v

Figure l is a perspective assembly View of the ironing board inventionl'showing a sad iron in operative position thereupon.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary plan View of the assembly. Y y j Figure 3 isan enlarged cross-sectional view approximately through 3 3 of a Figure2. i

Figure 4 is an enlarged cross-sectional View approximately 'through i-llof Figure 2.

Figure 5 is a 'perspective view ofthe ironing board showing the ironingcloth partially lifted up and a portion of the ironing pad broken awayto show the ironing cloth clamping mechanism here shown inreleasedposition. I

Figure 6 is an enlarged cross-sectional view through 6-6 of Figure 5,showing the clamp in clamped position.

Figure 7 is a bottom assembly view.

Figure 8 is a bottom view of the ironing cloth in a fiat position.

Figure 9 is a perspective view of one of the parts of the ironingclothclamping mechanism.

Figure 10 is a plan view showing variations of the present invention asapplied to a metal ironing board.

Figure 11 is a. cross-sectional view through il-I I of Figure 10.

Figure 12 is a plan view of a wooden ironing board showing furthervariations of the present invention. v

VFigure 13 is a cross-sectional view through H3A-I3 of Figure 12. vFigure 14 isanvenlarged cross-sectional View through I--Ii of Figure 12.Y v

Figure 15 is a fragmentary plan view ofka wooden ironing board showing afurther variation of the present invention.

Figure 16 is a bottom assembly view of a further variation of thepresent invention.

Figure 17 is a cross-sectional view through Il-I'i of Figure 16. y p aFigure 18 is a cross-sectional view through a similar portion as isvFigure 3, showing a further variation of the .cloth clamping mechanism.

Figure 19 is a cross-,sectional 'View through a similar portion as isFigure 3, showing a further variation of the cloth clamping mechanism.

Referring to the drawings in detail, and particularly to Figures 1 to 9,inclusive, thereof, wherein the present invention is shown in its mostpreferred form, the ironing board embodying the present inventioncomprises an ordinary ironing board 2&3 with or without legs structure,and certain other elements specified hereinafter combined therewith.

At the butt end 2| of the board and on the upper surface 22 thereof, aniron holder 23 is fastened thereto by screws or other securing means 24which are flush with the upper surface of the holder, said holder beingof metal or other suitable material. The iron holder comprisesprincipally a broad plate 25 upon whose upper surface 25 a sad iron Smay be supported, and the holder is formed with downward extendingflange 21 to contain an insulating air space 28 between the plate andthe board, and the holder rests upon its flanges against the board.Upward extending ilanges 29 are formed on all sides of the plate excepton the side adjacent the ironing portion of the board, and are for thepurpose of arresting the sad iron from sliding off the holder andfalling on the floor. The said side not having the upward flange has agently curving edge 30 leading into a said downward ange.

Also located on the butt portion of the ironing board is a sad iron cordguiding element 3 I. The cord guiding element as illustrated in thedrawings, Figures 1 to 11 inclusive, is formed from a round metal rod ofa diameter slightly less than the height of the air space between theholder and board, but may be made from any other suitable material whichcan provide its fundamental features hereinafter specified. The cordguiding element comprises a pivoting arm 32 the pivoting end of whichhas a flat portion 33 and a hole 34 therethrough and at the other end aformed loop 35, said loop having a restricted opening 36 through onepoint of its rim to the outside, the said opening being of a widthslightly narrower than the thickness of a sad iron cord C so to allowinsertion of the cord therethrough upon slight force but to not allowthe cord to freely fall out therethrough from the loop. The cord guidingelement is located to pivot at its hole about one of the holder securingscrews 24 at a point between the holder and the board. On the side ofthe holder which faces the rear of the board 31 an opening 38 isprovided in the downward flange through which the cord guiding elementextends. In operative position the cord guiding loop lays beyond theironing board rear edge 35 as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 10 of the drawing,and when not operative it may be stored away by being pivoted to comewithin the perirneter of the ironing board until the loop rests withinthe space between the holder and the board, as shown in phantom inFigure 2. An eX- tension on the guide element beyond the loop serves toform a stop 40 which limits the outward pivotal travel of the guideelement by butting against the inner Wall 4| of the depending flange 21.A downward depression in the holder plate forms stop 42 which maintainsthe guide element in operative position preventing its pivotal returnupon ordinary ironing stresses. Another similar stop 43 in the holderplate maintains the guide element in stored position preventing itstravel to beyond the board perimeter where it may easily get damaged.The inward pivotal travel is limited by opening 33 in 4 the holderflange being short of fully admitting' the guide element causing therebythe guide element at its point 44 to butt against the outer wall 45 ofthe depending flange 21 as shown in phantom of Figure 2. A portion 46 ofthe guide element is formed to serve as an accesible handle which may begrasped by the operator to move the guide element from a stored positionto an operative one.

On the generally tapered end 41 of the board and extending to adjacentthe iron holder is laid a pad 48 of felt or other suitable material, andon top of the pad, a detachable pad cover 49 made of fabric, plastic orother suitable material, which extends around the adjacent edges 58, 5|and 52 of the board. The pad cover is of a generally rectangular shapewherein one end is generally tapered and rounded as illustrated inFigure 8 and as is well known in ironing board pad cover art. Anenclosed slot 53, formedby folding over the edge and sewing it at 54, ismade on all sides of the pad cover except on the butt edge 55, said slothaving an opening 55 at its two ends. Within the slot, and extending outof its openings and across the space between the openings is an elasticcord band 51. A rivet 58 at each end of the slot re-enforces the sewingfrom unravelling when the elastic cord stresses the pad cover.

On the butt end of the ironing surface of the board and adjacent theiron holder a clamp mechanism 59 is provided for the purpose of securingthe butt edge of the pad cover. One of the parts comprising the clampmechanism is a clamp 66 extending the width of the board and securedalong its immovable edge 6| by a plurality of nails or other means G2 tothe upper surface of the board and the active edge thereof forming a jaw63 facing the iron holder and being active against the upper surface ofthe board, and the said clamp being of spring metal material and whenfree being urged open. The active edge may or may not have teeth asshown in the drawing for the purpose of gripping the pad cover. Throughthe said clamp active edge a plurality of holes 64 are provided, andcorresponding holes S5 through the ironing board, through which dependlinkages 55 having low heads 61 at their upper ends bearing against theupper surface of the clamp. The said linkages at their lower end areprovided with heads 68 between which and the lower surface |69 of theironing board, is an operative wedge 16. The said wedge comprises aplate 1| having a plurality of double tongues 12 inclined respective tothe lower surface of the ironing board, between which double tongues isa slot 13 wherethrough pass the stems of the depending linkages, whoselower heads bear on the underside of the tongues. The said wedge elementis mounted on the lower side of the ironing board by a nail or screw 14which passes through slot 15 of the wedge, sufficient clearance beingprovided between the slot sides and nail, and between the nail head andbottom of the board to permit sliding of the wedge, from a position asshown by solid lines in Figure 6 of the drawings to a position as shownby phantom lines in the same figure. The travel of the wedge element islimited to the length of slot 15 active on fixed nail 14. The wedgeelement'is bent at one end to form a push-pull handle 15 to permitgrasping thereof, on which operative directions may be printed (as shownin the drawings). Holes 11 are provided at the end of slot 13 forpurpose of assembling the clamp fit .nya fiera-tis' or the iin-rage'gassin-g .The 'operation of' the` cl'amp element :is -a's follows.; yullin'g pushing thevwed'geelement hanine ,transverses u; tagboard-causesthe inclined prgubi'tongues t traveipast the depending 1in-1;- ages fromtheir uppermost toA Iowerrnost portion, 'on visa "versa,A `When thelow'ermost'portionsare active 4against the linkages they force theflinkag'es `downward thereby'causing the latter to force the clamp jawto klock rdgwn against the upper 'Of the board;l When the4 uppermost'portions of the. doublejtongdes are active 'aga-inst the 'linkages theyrelease their 'force therefrom, thereby permitting the clamp jaw to openupward.

A further feature of the double tongues is that the inclined risingportion thereof varies at each station of double tongues in a manner sothat they are active consecutively and not simultaneously with tonguesof another station, which is accmplished by the distance between therise yat one siation to the rise vat 'another station being ynotthesameas the distance Vbet'vi/"een the linkages :of those stations, thepurpose fior this bingto 'divide intol small parts the effort requiredby Athe "operator to accomplish a clamp movement pnratiog. 4,

To plac the'replacea'ble pad cover on the-ironing board the followingprocedure is used:

The pad cover is inserted, butt end first and top side up, over thetapered end of the board and the elastic cord of the butt side, belowthe board. The cover is pulled on until its butt edge meets the ironholder. The clamp operative handle is pulled outward, the clamp thusopening. The butt edge of the pad cover is folded under and slipped intothe mouth of the clamp. The clamp is then closed down on the pad cover.Those edges of the pad cover with the elastic cord sewn therein are nowslipped over the edge of the ironing board onto the bottom side. Toremove the cover, the operation is performed in reverse pron cedure.

My invention is not limited to the construction hereinabove described,but may include such variations as will come within the scope of myclaims. Certain of such variations are shown in Figures 10 to 19,inclusive, of the drawings wherein numerals suffixed by letters refer tlike parts designated by similar numerals hereinabove.

One variation of the present invention as applied to a metal ironingboard is shown in Figures and 11 wherein the iron holder 18 is formedfrom a continuation of the ironing portion I9 of the ironing board, andthe holder portion being bent Vupward so to be flush with the ironingsurface. Insulation of the iron holder from the remainder of the ironingboard is accomplished by slots Si) cut through all around. The edgeareas 8| of the butt of the board are bent further upward to a levelhigher than the iron holder, thereby forming means for arresting theflat iron from sliding off the holder. The cord guide element 31A isoperative within the horizontal plane space between the said edge areasand the iron holder. The cloth clamping device shown in Figures 10 and11 comprises a flat bar clamp 82 having a plurality of grooves 83 on oneedge, the said clamp being removably clipped under the heads of bolts 84in a manner so that the bolts pass through the grooves, said boltscontinuing through the ironing board and being actuated therebelow bywing nuts 85.

In Figures 12 and 1.3 is shown a variation of the cord guiding elementcomprising an aperture 86 through a wonden ironing beard 20B having arestricted opening 'l'on'the rear edge 39B "bf the ironing board buttportion 24B, all edges of the aperture being roundedto prevent'wearingout the sad iron cord. The iron holder 23B shown in l,Figures 12 andAV13 Vserves also as the ironing pad` cover butt edge clamp, thusrequiringno extra vclamp device. In the present variation vthe holderhas a plurality of lugs 38 on its rear-butt edge, holes'89 through saidlugs, and securing screws 24B 'through said holes and `screwed hard downinto the ironing board. The depending side of the holder 27B, which isadjacent the ironing area comprises a clamping jaw 9G active against theupper surface of said ironing board. The

'edge may or may ynot be serrated for improved iside ef the holder to4rise sufliciently to allow the tbward-butt edge of the ironingpadbo'v'er to be inserted or removed from between the jaw and board. Asa 'further variation, instead of the slight upward bend of the lugs, aspring may be used between the active part of the holder and the board.Cooling vents 93 in the holder and holes 94 in the board may or may notbe used.

In Figure 15 is shown a variation of the cord guiding element shown inFigure 12, in the present figure being shown opening onto the butt edgeof the ironing board and wherein consideration is made for an easiermanufacture of the aperture 81C, the opening thereto being restricted byan ordinary flat spring 95 mounted at 96 and bridging the opening.

In Figures 16 and 17 is shown a variation which permits use of a padcover 49A of conventional design having gathering means on all edges,thereby requiring no clamp device. The board 20D is in two parts 91 and93 separated by space 99, the two parts being fastened rigidly togetherby bracket |00, and space IDI under the butt end of the board 91 beingprovided.

Also in Figure 17 is a variation of the insulation 28A between theholder 23D and the board 98, here being shown of asbestos 2BA.

Another variation of the clamp is shown in Figure 18 wherein a pluralityof holes |112 are provided in the board 20E to contain clampingmechanism |03 wherein pivots E04 and |65 are fixed to the board andlinkage |06 is rigid to the holder 23E. By prying holder upward with afingernail in groove ll the holder pivots at |04 thereby transmittingmovement through link 108 and causing clamp IDS t0 pivot at E05 andopening clamp jaw H0. A spring lll urges the clamp to normally stayclosed and the holder down against the board, by bearing against the pinat pivot I l2.

In Figure 19 a variation of the clamp device is shown wherein linkage66A is firmly fastened to clamp l I3, in the present figure by riveting,thereby eliminating requirement of a spring to open up the clamp, inview that the linkages are forced upward by a certain said travel of thewedge element 10A due to said linkages being vertically locked by theirnecks lili between forked double tongues '12A of the wedge element. As afurther variation in Figure 19 the ironing pad 48A extends only toadjacent the clamp, thereby permitting assaeoe,

Space for a stronger construction of the clamp, in the present gureshown channeled.

What I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In combination with an ironing board and on the butt end thereof, ametal tray, a padded element covering the generally tapered end of saidironing board and extending longitudinally over a major portion of saidironing board to adjacent said tray, said tray having anupwardlyextending wall on all sides of its upper surface except on theside adjacent said padded element, and upper surface of said paddedelementbeing substantially flush with upper surface of said tray, saidtray having a downwardly extending flange resting on the board forelevating the upper surface of said tray, fastening elements forsecuring the tray to the ironing board, said tray having an opening atone side, a cord holder adjustable in and out of said tray opening andretained for adjustment by one of said fastening elements for the tray.

2. In combination, an ironing board having a butt end and a tapered`end, a metal tray adapted to be secured to the butt end of the board, apadded element extending over the tapered end of the ironing board, saidtray having an upper surface and upwardly extending ilanges on al1 sidesof said surface except on the side adjacent to the padded element, saidtray having a downwardly extending flange resting on the board forelevating its upper surface to a location substantially flush with theupper surface of the padded element, fastening screws adjustable throughthe tray for securing the tray to the ironing board, said tray having anopening at one side of the same, a cord holder pivotally connected tothe tray and board by one of said fastening screws and adjustable in andout of said opening, said tray having depression stops for limiting theinward and outward movement of said cord holder.

HENRIETTA ADAMEC.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le ofthis ipatent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,082,838 Wood Dec. 30, 19131,651,427 Wegh Dec. 6, 1927 1,659,427 Danielson Feb. 14, 1928 1,889,110Riiey Nov. 29, 1932 1,945,194 Jones Jan. 30, 1934 2,194,224 Hauck Mar.19, 1940 2,269,804 Allaback Jan. 13, 1942

